Short+Story

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I looked up at the trees that surrounded us as we hiked through the forest. The

July air was thin and the sun was beating down on me, making me regret wanting to

take a hike in the first place. My older sister Maggie and I were hiking through the

Washington forest, probably lost, with no idea where we were headed.The trees

surrounding us were tall and grotesque, with long, shadowing arms. Walking through

them, the trees all around us seemed as constricting as a cage.

“Why did we have to go camping, anyway?” I griped to her. If there was anything

I hated in this world, it was the fact that every summer, my father dragged Maggie and

me to the middle of nowhere in Washington state, and set up camp for a week.

Camping was a tradition our family has had for years. It was practically the only time our

family could spend time together. Now especially, the once tradition was just a reminder

of the fun times we used to have. My older sister Christie had moved to Chicago, and

my mother had died. Ever since our mother had died though, our father seemed almost

desperate to spend as much time with us as he could, as though we were going to

disappear at any moment. I would much rather stay home and listen to the Beatles, but

my father insisted we go, and neither I or Maggie could refuse him. Only two days into

the sentence, we were both already bored. We had decided to go for a hike to kill time.

“Oh, come on Amy,” Maggie replied, “it’s not so bad.” We had been hiking for

about an hour, and hadn’t seen anything other than trees. Lots and lots of trees. After we’d walked for a few more minutes, the trees ended and revealed a

clearing. In the middle of the clearing was a spring, although it was unlike any I’d ever

seen before. It was clear and fresh, and was sparkling in the sunlight. I walked over to   the spring, and noticed something on a tree near by. Something had been carved into

the body. It read, “The Fountain of Youth”. I raised my eyebrows skeptically.

“Look.” I said to Maggie, pointing out the carving. She read it then shrugged.

“Maybe it //is// the Fountain of Youth.” She said, looking at the stream.

“Yeah,” I replied sarcastically, “this is the Fountain of Youth.” She just shook her

head. Suddenly, Maggie whipped around to face me.

“Amy, I just had the best idea!” she said, grabbing my shoulders.

“What?” I asked, wearily.

“We should drink water from the Fountain of Youth!” She told me with a smile. I

raised my eyebrows.

“You want to drink that? It’s still a stream!” I exclaimed. She just

shook her head.

“No it’s not. It’s perfectly clean. And once you’ve drunken from it, you’ll stay the

same age forever.” I just stared at her.

“Sure,” I said, “but this is not the Fountain of Youth. It’s just a stream.”

“Then prove it.” Maggie said deviously. I shook my head.

“No. I’m not going to drink from a stream.”

“I should have known you wouldn’t.” She said, smirking at me.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked suspiciously.

“Well, ever since Mom died, you’ve been a complete coward about everything.”

“No I haven’t.” I replied defensively.

“Oh, come //on// Amy. You totally have. You never do anything that takes you out of

your little safe zone. You’re becoming //boring.//”

“No. I’m //not.//” I insisted, but it was useless. Maggie wasn’t listening to me

anymore.

“Then //prove it.// Drink the water.” I glared at my sister, but didn’t say anything. I

played with the many bracelets on my wrist while thinking about what to do next. She

was right, but I would never admit it. I really didn’t want to drink from the stream, but I

would never hear the end of it if I didn’t. It was just a normal stream, right? What’s the

worst that could happen? It’s not as if I actually believed that it was the Fountain of

Youth. No. It wasn’t worth it. I wasn’t going to go against my beliefs just to satisfy

Maggie.

“No. I’m not going to do it.” I told her.

“See?” smirked Maggie. “Told you you wouldn’t.” She turned around and started

walking back towards the campsite.

“Wait!” I called to her. Something had snapped inside of me; I couldn’t take it

anymore. She stopped and turned around, looking at me expectantly.

I walked over to the “Fountain of Youth” and took out my empty water bottle. I filled it

with water from the stream, and stood up again. I gestured to Maggie, then drank it. It

was as though it was the first water I’ve drunken in a thousand years. It didn’t taste like

normal water; it was as cold as an iceberg and tasted as good as candy. I quickly drank

the whole bottle without stopping. When I looked at Maggie she was just staring at me.

“There.” I said, showing her the empty bottle. “I drank it all. Are you happy now?”

She just shrugged.

“I’m hungry. Let’s go back to the campsite.” I just stared at her. I had just drunken

water form a //stream// to prove a point and she didn’t even care? I couldn’t believe her.

After we’d arrived back at the campsite, I felt different, but I didn’t know what it was. I

didn’t for a long time. I just assumed that someone had carved “The Fountain of Youth”

into the tree, and that it was just another normal stream. I was wrong about that, but it

was a long time before I figured that out either.

Years and years later as I hiked through the woods I had avoided for so long, I

thought about the first time I had made this journey. The trees were the same, the

animals were the same, and once I found it, the Fountain of Youth was the same. And

so was I. I had been the same ever since that fateful July day, so long ago, when I’d so

foolishly drunken from the stream to prove a point to Maggie. This time, I made the

journey alone. Instead of the hot July sun, today was gloomy and dark. The trees were

different too; somehow sadder. Maggie had grown up, started a family, and then

eventually died. Everyone did. Everyone I cared about had continued their lives, and

was now gone. But I was the same. I’ll always be the same. All because of one foolish

mistake I’d made centuries ago. I had never returned to the Fountain of Youth after that.

Never told anyone about it either. After it became apparent that I had stopped growing,

my family took me all over the country trying to find out what was wrong. So many

different doctors, but none of them could explain to my parents why a seemingly healthy

fifteen year old had suddenly stopped aging. Maggie never told. She was always

different after that day. I think she felt guilty, but I didn’t blame her. She didn’t //force// me

drink the water. And now, all alone, I stood over the stream, gazing into the crystal

water. I could remember that day like it was yesterday, and would do anything to undo it.

As I looked into the water, I could see myself. Not the me from the present, but

myself from the past. It was the day that I’d drunken the water. I watched as I argued

with Maggie. She was taunting me; and I was letting her win. Then all of a sudden, I

was standing there, face to face with her. The sun was shining gloriously, its rays

highlighting the blond in Maggie’s hair, like it always did. She was standing right in front

of me, face to face, like she was so long ago.

“Then prove it.” she was telling me. “Drink the water.” I looked around. Everything

was the same as it was, all those years ago.

“You know what Maggie?” I said, turning towards my sister. “You’re not going to

get me to drink that water, so let’s go back to the campsite.” She opened her mouth to

retort, but then closed it. I think she saw that I wasn’t scared; that it would be useless to

continue. She shrugged, then turned and started walking through the woods. I smiled. I

would never make that mistake again; never let someone else intimidate me into doing

something I didn’t want to. I didn’t know how time was turned back, but I was glad that it

was. I was getting a second chance. A chance to actually live my life, and I wasn’t going

to take that for granted. I wasn’t afraid of life anymore. As we walked through the

woods, I took in the scenery. Washington really was beautiful. Maybe camping wasn’t so

bad after all.